July 22, 2007
Interview of Mr. Laxmi Chand Singh (Chemical 1968) with Mumbai Mirror
Chronicle Editor @ Jul 22, 2007
Link
‘Never keep money as the objective in the foreground’
…says LC Singh to the newer generations getting into the business of consultancy. Anamika Butalia spoke to LC Singh, President & CEO, Nihilent Technologies Pvt Ltd about the IT-BHU Alumni Award of Excellence 2007- 08 presented to him and his journey that has got him all this way
Posted On Thursday, June 21, 2007
| Tell us what brings a Harvard graduate all this way? Is it just the degree?
Well. I never keep a destination in mind but choose and enjoy walking on a path I choose. I worked at SBI for a short while and did my stint abroad. Joined TCS in the middle management and did a n umber of things which gave a lot of satisfaction. I began the products division at TCS. I was involved in some unconventional marketing including expanding the UK, South African and Middle East operations and a lot of other creative things. At Harvard, I put forward the case of the Indian way of looking at things and was chosen valedictorian on the graduation.... I was lucky to have worked with the doyen of the IT industry Mr FC Kohli, which was the single biggest contributor to shape my professional career. |
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Do you have a mentor?
I still am guided by a lot of learning from being around Mr FC Kohli, who was very judicious always. He would look and treat people only on their performance, ability and focus. He would give tremendous freedom if you could win his trust. He never cared for where you came from, what your mother tongue was or what religion you followed. Another highlight was that he inculcated in you a thirst for learning. He single-handedly built the entire software industry of and I was privileged to play my part in his schema.
Does the Indian industry have inspirational heads of companies?
No one particularly of the present generation, still FC Kolhi remains the ideal. I am sure there are heads of companies, who have done well and are an inspiration. Some time back I met Mukesh Ambani and I was amazed with his ability to think big. There are also others like Narayan Murthy, who has been able to built a huge brand even though his company came much later than TCS. However the position I am in, I still follow FC Kohli's vision of building a service company by building capability and referencibility and keeping the costs to bare minimum; and also for applying a systems approach to solve problems.
What qualities are basic to handling your role and responsibilities?
Being fair to people is the key. One must dispassionately look only at one's "performance" while judging people. And make sure that relentless hard work and focussed effort on their own part is what the hallmark of a good CEO really is.
Has risk ever bothered you?
Risk has never bothered me because you never achieve anything without taking one. However, risks have to be "managed" continuously. Any advice for the youth entering the field?
Keep money as the objective in the background, and never to the fore.
Anywhere beyond the work that you’re currently assigned to?
Never has it been my aim to be CEO. But leading is what comes naturally! What I love about my work is to create things out of nothing. This means to create values in things other people may not see. I love building multi-layered relationships, which may begin professionally but end up as becoming deeply respectful and personal. My wish is to make the company I work with one of the most high value brands in the consulting/executional arena.
Will we hear more from your company?
We will not remain the background for long. We will be known as the leading company of our generation. It’s just the question of time. We are presently in change management using our patented framework MC3, which looks at approaching change management in a systemic manner by looking at the roles of people, process and technology.